Lady Gaga is bravely opening up about her battle with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder(PTSD) and how she suffers from a mental illness.

The 30-year-old singer paid a visit recently to the Ali Forney Center, a homeless shelter for LGBT youth in New York City’s Harlem neighborhood, for the #ShareKindnesscampaign.

“I love to give things to people that have nothing or less than me. These children are not just homeless or in need. Many of them are trauma survivors; they’ve been rejected in some kind of way,” Gaga said during the visit, which was shown on The Today Showon Monday (December 5). “My own trauma in my life has helped me to understand the trauma of others.”

“I don’t have the same kind of issues that you have, but I have a mental illness and I struggle with that every day so I need my mantra to help keep me relaxed,” Gaga said while leading a meditation exercise. “I told the kids today that I suffer from a mental illness. I suffer from PTSD. I’ve never told anyone that before, so here we are. But the kindness that’s been shown to me by doctors—as well as my family and my friends—it’s really saved my life.”